Wednesday Hodgepodge

It's Hodgepodge time. Go on over to Joyce's blog to see other people's answers.

1. It's still May, right? When were you last in the middle of something that might be described as mayhem? My life feels like mayhem right now. I'm looking for a new job, looking for a new apartment, cleaning my current apartment, sorting and getting rid of things in my apartment. Sometimes, I feel like just taking time for myself is just wrong.

2. When did you last feel dismayed? Last week. My job was reorganized and I'm not pleased with the outcome. That's all I'll say about that.

3. What's a food combination you like, but other people may find strange? Rice and ice cream. My ex introduced me to it years ago and I thought it wouldn't be good, but now every time I have Chinese food, I feel the need to grab some vanilla ice cream and mix it with my rice.

4. "It is never too late to be what you might have been." Do you think that's true? Why or why not? I like the idea.

5. US News and World Report listed the best historic destinations in the US as follows-Washington D.C, Philadelphia PA, Williamsburg VA, Charleston SC, Boston MA, Richmnd VA, Savannah, GA, Santa Fe NM, Yellowstone, San Antonio TX, San Francisco CA, New Orleans LA, and Charlottesville VA.  Of those listed how many have you seen in person? Which two sites on the list would you most like to see in person? I've been to Washington, D.C., and New Orleans, LA. I will be going to Charleston, SC for Christmas.
I think it would be fun to see Philadelphia, PA and Savannah, GA. I'd love to see Liberty Hall, and all those cool sites you see in National Treasure, and I'd love to see the houses in Savannah.

 6. May is National Physical Fitness and Sports Month. If you had to participate in a single fitness activity for the next half hour, which activity would you choose? I like walking.

7. What did you like best about the city, town, or neighborhood where you grew up? I like that everything is within walking distance.

8.  Insert your own random thought here. I'm still cleaning and sorting. Sunday, I was going to make a graduation card for a friend, but then figured since I was in my craft closet, I should pull out supplies for a couple swaps I'm in and then I decided I should start sorting and cleaning in there, and then I got tired of sitting on the floor. I worked on it again yesterday. Tonight, we have family coming to move stuff, so I have to have it done before I go to work today. I'm not entirely sure that's possible.

I posted a Pay it Forward post a few days ago, and no one has signed up. Would anyone like to receive some art made by me? If so, go here and comment.

Pay it forward

Last year I commented on someone's blog on one of these and I never got anything. I also posted it on my art blog and didn't get any sign ups, so I'm trying it again this year.

I commented on Ma Vie Trouvee's post about this, and so I have to do the same thing on my blog. Maybe I'll get people commenting this year.

 

Pay It Forward Art-making Project for 2014

I'm participating in this art share project - do you want to join me?

What I will do:   Make a small work of art for the first five people who comment on this post and say "YES, I want in!"  It might be a fabric piece, paper piece or something mixed. 

What you will do:  Swap a piece of art with me, post the rules on your blog or any other social media AND make something for the first five who comment on YOUR post...you in return will get 5 pieces of original art.  Really it is 4, as I count as one of your swaps.  How fun is this?

The rules are simple:

– It has to be your work, made by you, and the recipient must receive it before 2014 ends.

 

- Copy & Paste this as your latest entry on your favorite social website

– It can be anything art-based: a drawing/illustration, a photograph, digital, jewelry, a knitted item, cross-stitch, paper maché – or anything in-between.


- It doesn't matter if you aren't an artist...the sky's the limit...

Okay - who is in??

My week

I was so glad it was Friday yesterday, I've been waiting for the end of the week since Monday night, which was really crappy.

So, Monday, I found out I didn't get a salaried job I applied for. I'm not sure why. I'm not sure what I'm going to do. I know I can't live off the library as my main job anymore, it's not economically feasible for me.

But, I really couldn't take much time for myself. I had to have my apartment cleaned by Tuesday at 2. My mom had told me I had three weeks of cleaning to do. I know you guys don't know what my apartment looked like before, but here are some nice clean pictures for you. They're a little out of order.

This is looking into the living room from the doorway. Normally, there is a stack of books behind the chair, a box of mail stuff on the floor by the magazine rack, a box behind the desk chair, and some kind of food stuff next to the couch.

This is looking toward the living room from the top of the stairs. My apartment is on the third floor of a Victorian house, so that's two flights of stairs, one very windy when I get home from a long day. My craft closet would be to the left of the photo, most of the time, my craft supplies cover the hallway because I don't have much room for them.

I've turned to the left from the picture above. I'm now looking east to my bedroom, you can see my craft closet door on the left.

And here we are in my bedroom, to the left is my bathroom. To the right is one of my dressers. Normally, I have a lot of stuff on the floor. The bed is generally not made. That pink chair is usually filled with stuffed animals.

Here I've turned to the right of the photo above. Usually, I have a large laundry basket on the floor next to the chair, there's clothes hanging from the rack in the corner.

Like I said the pictures are out of order. You can see my stairs to the right. The place we're looking at is usually covered in boxes, coats, shoes and my purse. My kitchen counter is usually covered in dishes waiting to be washed.

And here were are looking into my kitchen. The table is usually covered in stuff. Like I said the kitchen counter is usually covered in dishes. Until last week, I had a large box on the floor with stuff I wanted to get rid of.

And here we're looking into the living room from the kitchen. This doorway is on the other side of the refrigerator in the picture above. Once again, I usually have a lot of stuff on my floor.

This is what our garbage cans looked like Tuesday morning. I was really impressed that the garbage guys took it all away. I felt sorry for them.
So, I took the rest of the week for myself. Tuesday, when the realtor and my parents came through, I went downtown to buy things for my Favorite Color swap partner. I found a few things, and something for me. I found a 1.25 pint Old Orchard Pyrex bowl. I don't know if it's vintage, but I love the size, so I bought it. That night, we went to Red Green. It's hard faking being happy, when you'd really like to stay at home and mope.
Wednesday, I had to be at work at noon, I basically sat on my ass and watched a movie I forgot to take back, I figured if it was gonna be late, I might as well watch it. It was hard at work, thankfully it was all people who didn't get the job, so we all talked about it, we needed it. One of my co-workers even gave me a hug, I really needed that.
Thursday, I also worked at noon, I'm not even sure what I did that morning. It was very awkward at work, I had to work/interact with 3 people that got salaried jobs.
Friday, I slept in and took my time at stuff. One of my neighbors was having their annual sale, so I wondered over to that.

I bought two Pookie bears (Garfield's teddy bear, it's kinda funny, I got rid of all my Garfield stuffed animals, but I bought these.), an I Love Lucy beanie baby, and a couple cute boxes I thought I could use for swaps.
I went to the grocery store to mail my Favorite Color swap package, and a couple Altoid tins someone bought off my Etsy store. On the way home, I stopped by our cupcake emporium, I had to pick up my free cupcake, and of course buy some. I'm standing there waiting to be helped and there's these two ladies in front of me ordering lunch (which is kinda weird, cause their main product is cupcakes), and one of them says all she wants is lunch, no cupcake. The other one comments that just by being there and smelling them, she was gaining weight.

They are peanut butter cup, pink champagne, dark chocolate/white swirl, dirt and worms, hazelnut and dark chocolate raspberry. Later that night, I hung out with a friend who also didn't get the job and we bitched about work and other stuff.
Today, I had about 6 garage sales I wanted to go to. I had planned to do some of them on Friday, but I got distracted by the computer. I didn't find very much to buy and spent about $5.00. I ended up walking 5.52 miles, and my feet were not happy when I got home.

I've dubbed this, the Elmo pillow. It pretty much looks like someone skinned Elmo and made him into a pillow. And I certainly don't need another pillow, but I like it.

I have no idea what these are, I found them and bought them because they are wicked cute. There's pigs, frogs, turtles, killer whales, seahorses, hippos, a dolphin, a teddy bear, monkeys, kangaroos, clown fish, octopi, and elephants. They're kinda rubbery and have a hole in the bottom like they're pencil toppers. I also bought a thimble for my collection.
When I got home, I found my Favorite Color package on the porch. I said my color was purple, and I'm a bit disappointed in the stuff in the package. There were a couple fake flower napkin rings, a spatula, a towel, a couple candles, a cute little hedgehog lip balm and a bottle of lavender soap. I kinda feel that she just put in things most people would like/need and didn't really pay attention to what I liked. I did say I liked fake flowers, so there was that.
I feel I should stop doing swaps, it seems one of every five or so I get something I'm actually excited about.
After getting home, I sat down for about 20 minutes, then had to go get gas so I could mow the lawn. And then had a heck of a time starting the mower, and then it got clogged because the lawn was really bad, so we had to raise the height of the mower, one of the wheels is stuck or something, so it's really hard to change, that was fun. Even with raising the height of the mower it still took forever to get the lawn done, and then I had to lower it back to normal height and mow again. I did get to take a small break while eating lunch.
I feel like I've been busy all day. Now, that I'm actually sitting still, my legs, feet and back hurt. I'm really tired and heading to bed really soon.

How was everyone else's week?

For my broken heart

Reba's For my Broken Heart song totally sums up how I feel right now:
There were no angry words at all
As we carried boxes down the hall
One by one we put them in your car
Nothing much for us to say
One last goodbye and you drove away
I watched your tail-lights
As they faded in the dark
I couldn't face the night in that lonely bed
So I laid down on the couch instead

Last night I prayed the Lord my soul to keep
Then I cried myself to sleep
So sure life wouldn't go on without you
But oh this sun is blinding me
As it wakes me from the dark
I guess the world didn't stop
For my broken heart

Clocks still tickin, life goes on
Radio still plays a song
As I try to put my scattered thoughts in place
And it takes all the strength I've got
To stumble to the coffee pot
The first of many lonely mornings I've got to face
You call to see if I'm ok
Look out the window and I just say

Last night I prayed the Lord my soul to keep
Then I cried myself to sleep
So sure life wouldn't go on without you
But oh this sun is blinding me
As it wakes me from the dark
I guess the world didn't stop
For my broken heart

I guess the world ain't gonna stop
For my broken heart

Though my broken heart is over a job and not a person. I do feel like the world should stop, I did cry myself to sleep last night and hope the world didn't go on. I wanted this job so badly. It took everything within my being to not break down in tears when my supervisor told me I didn't get it. I feel I put so much into this job that I should get the promotion. I have worked so hard every day I go to work. I've been there almost 5 years and I'm still in the same spot. I'm happy for my co-workers that got the position, but I feel so broken inside. I knew I was too young to have a job I loved.
I have so many other things that I NEED to do, I don't have time to mope and feel sorry for myself. I'm glad I'm not going to work today, but I don't know how I can face it on Wednesday. I just wanna leave and never come back

no such luck. I need music, pop, comfort food and surprises in the mail

New purchases.

I've been lax on posting lately. Seems I'm only doing the Wednesday Hodgepodge. Last weekend, my co-worker and I went to The Lucky Star Market at the local winery, basically it was a bunch of artists selling their wares. I didn't buy a ton, but I love what I bought:

a cute teddy bear, 3 different kinds of washi tape (which I actually used some of the other day), a cute square of flowers and some photos.
I had read on their website that the first 50 people were to get a free bag. We didn't make it into the first 50, but I really wanted a bag so I picked one up. I'll have to say I didn't really practice much self control.

I also got a new friend:

She had built a nest on the fire escape right out my kitchen window. One day, I heard this thumping and I thought my neighbors were slamming their back door, I go into the kitchen and a robin flies away. I finally started inching into the kitchen, and found this robin flying into the window.

She would alternate flying and hitting the window with her beak and flying at the window and grazing it with her wings. And then I'd come into the kitchen and watch her, and she'd sit on the fire escape and stare at me. It was very bizarre.

And then, last Sunday, we started the week of rain. It rained about an inch on Sunday, with a few downpours. And basically rained all week. I haven't seen her since.

A few weeks ago, Cathy at Ma Vie Trouvee posted about green tea kit kats, and that got me interested, so I wandered over to one of the three Asian food stores here looking for green tea and other flavors of kit kats. I didn't find any of those, but I found these yummy goey things called mochi. I'm not entirely sure what they are, but I really like them. They're made with rice paste and some kind of flavoring. I bought some green tea mochi, and then there were some other ones also called mochi, but they were only made with powder and not the paste, those weren't as good. So, I went back for more. And I bought some choco sticks with taro (which I'm still not quite sure what that is), some mango mochi, mango cakes, some more green tea mochi, and some red bean mochi. While I was picking out these new ones to try, I was eyeing some other ones.

I'm not too sold on the mango mochi or mango cakes, it seems the Asians don't sweeten them up as much as we do.
Wednesday, my parents say we need to talk. That's always a good sign right? Well, turns out, their realator says they need to list the house soon, and he's coming to take pictures next Tuesday, and by that time I have to clean, make sure there's no clutter on the floor. My parents said I could stack boxes in my closets, but not so much that people can't get into the closets, and I'm not supposed to sort while I'm cleaning. So, I'm a little stressed out.
Friday, my friend and I went shopping, usually I have a great time with her, but I imposed a rule on myself that I wasn't allowed to buy stuff I didn't need and only bought one thing I didn't need. While we were out, the sky looked so cool, so I had to take a picture of it:

Today, my co-worker and I went to a close town's garage sale. I spent less that $20 dollars, but I don't feel like I got anything really cool. I did see an old radio:

Here's what I did buy this weekend, the one thing I bought yesterday, a bird garland:

And the things I picked up today: some activity books (the totally help with my stress), a make your own gnome kit, some fabric flowers,

a couple solar dancing guys, a cute cat, a few pieces of jewelry,

And I headed back to the Asian food store today, and bought the rest of the flavors of mochi they had there. Some three pack, taro and some red bean cakes. I am not allowed to go to that store anymore. I'm also not allowed to spend anymore money on myself.

And I found out that since it's May, I now have dental insurance.

A little advice please

A little background first. I work my city library, I've been there about 5 years. I LOVE my job. At the moment I'm hourly. There was an opening for 3 salaried positions (all the same position), so I applied. Tomorrow I have my interview, I'm trying to figure out what to wear.

This was my first idea:

 And then I thought, I wonder what this looks like with dress pants:

I'm leaning toward the dress pants. Most of the time I wear jeans to work. Now that it's getting warm out, I'll be wearing more skirts. I just feel I wear skirts a lot too. I never wear dress pants to work. At least, not this job (the pants are part of my uniform for my other job).

I'd love to know what you all think.

Wednesday Hodgepodge

It's time for Wednesday Hodgepodge again.

1. April 22nd is Earth Day. Are you inspired by nature? In what way? I enjoy wandering around in nature. My favorite day in the spring and summer would be to be out walking in the woods. I'm not sure I'm really inspired by it.

2. Down to earth, four corners of the earth, move heaven and earth, not have an earthly chance, or salt of the earth...which earthly idiom have you most recently encountered? Explain.

3. Share one piece of advice you might give a newly engaged couple. Have fun every day. I'm not married, so I don't know what it's like to be married, but when I was with my ex, the best days were when we had fun. I think if there were more of those, we might still be together.

4. When did you last engage someone to perform a job, task, service, home repair, or improvement? On a scale of 1-10 (ten being the best) how would you rate their work and/or your satisfaction with the job or service provided? Honestly it's been so long, I have no idea.

5. When did you last find yourself engaged in small talk? Are you awkward or an expert or somewhere in between? I'm not good with small talk. If I don't know a person very well, I find it very hard to relate to them.

6.  What was the last historic place you visited? My house is historic, does that count? Probably not. A few years ago, We went to an old fort in Dubuque, IA. Unfortunately most of the buildings were gone, and it was Memorial Day weekend so the museum wasn't open. It was still cool to look around.

7. The world would be a better place if we just weren't so lazy.

8.  Insert your own random thought here. I'm ready for garage sales. I know I'm supposed to be downsizing, but I love the thrill of the hunt. I love planning my weekend jaunts, seeing what each sale will have that I find interesting. I love getting out and walking places. I don't have to buy anything, and I'm going to try very hard this year not to buy much. I do have a couple things I'm looking for.
Last weekend, I set out for a garage sale, when I got there it didn't have as much as they advertised, so I ended up wandering around and taking pictures of for rent signs.

When I go out for garage sales, I start my list on Wednesdays, when the sales are most prominent in the paper. I continue to check the online listings and Craigslist up until I leave on Friday and Saturday. I go through the listings and write down the addresses, times and what sounds good in their listings in my notebook. Once I've got all the ones down for a certain day, I plan out my route (I walk to all my sales, so having them close together makes sense), and I start out on that route, if I happen to notice more while I'm out, I generally stop. I bring a bag, lots of ones, and some water so I'm ready for most anything. I also have my MP3 player to listen to while I'm walking.
Every winter, I start saving my garage sale money, or even at the end of the season. When I'm paying in cash, every $1 I get back, I stick in a book and then count them out when garage sale season starts next time. It seems to work great for me.

Favorite Color Swap

I joined the Favorite Color Swap hosted by Chaotic Goddess Swaps




Basically, I'm filling a package with five items in my partner's favorite color.
I have to pick items out that my partner would like, they are to cost $20-$30, and to be mailed out by or before May 9th.

I'm looking forward to this swap. I joined a swap a few years ago that was about the same, send a partner items in their favorite color and get some back in return. I had a lot of fun with that swap. I hope to have as much fun learning about my partner and sending them some fun items.

I just realized I have no idea what I put down as my favorite color. I don't have a favorite color all the time. It used to be green because I collected frogs and green is bright, and then I switched to blue because I have a lot of blue in my wardrobe. When I did the other color swap, I said pink because I wanted more pink in my house, my partner did great, I remember getting candlesticks, bath supplies, scarfs, candles and some jewelry. I think I may have put down purple mostly because I want more of that in my house.
I love getting to know new people and finding things that will make them happy. That's basically the reason I do swaps, that and getting something cool in the mail

If you'd like to participate, click on the button above, sign-up's are open until Monday.

Friday Confessional

It's Friday, and I'm playing along with Vandy at The Testosterone Three and Me for some Friday Confessions. She told me once, we all need to confess sometimes, so here goes...

• I confess...It was a beautiful day today, but I just sat inside all day and read a book. I just didn't feel like going outside.
• I confess...it's been a very trying week. I really just needed a day to myself.
• I confess...I have a very bad night on Monday. I got some very troubling news at my job that afternoon and my way of coping is not very constructive. It was a long and hard night.
• I confess...I wish I had someone to talk to sometimes. Almost all my friends work at the library, sometimes it would just be nice to chat with someone who didn't know me.
• I confess...I really can't make popcorn, I have mastered cheesecake, but I can't figure out popcorn
• I confess...I don't know why I even eat popcorn, after the first piece it's stuck in my teeth and it feels like I spend forever picking it out.
• I confess...after watching Hugh Jackman in Prisoners, I had to watch an X-Men movie to get the not so nice image of his character from Prisoners out of my head.
• I confess...I watch a lot of violent movies, but Prisoners was disturbing. I believe someone can get pushed that far, but it's still sad and disturbing.
• I confess...it was nice watching Jake Gylenhall and Hugh Jackman in Prisoners. Jake looked like he added some weight for his character, but the mountain man look for Hugh didn't really do much for me
• I confess...I always make an Easter basket for myself, but lately I haven't found much besides candy to put in it. I feel bad about it, but if nothing is interesting enough to buy, I don't see wasting my money.
• I confess...I'm supposed to be downsizing, but I want to keep buying things, it makes me happy. I want to find that one really cool thing for my Easter basket.
• I confess...I'm tired of looking for apartments, it totally drains me. I wish I could just wake up some morning and someone would offer me the perfect apartment, but when does life ever work out for me?
• I confess...I'm more than a little annoyed that the students are acting like babies and have gotten VEISHEA cancelled for the year. I had plans to attend the International Food Festival tomorrow. I was so excited to go.
• I confess...I think they should cancel VEISHEA permanently. It seems every year there's something. Obviously not as bad as the riots we've had in the past and the other night, but it's getting to be annoying. The students act like babies, the university cancels it the next year, or changes something, the students are better the next year, and a few years along something else happens, it seems to be a never-ending cycle.
• I confess...I really wanted some new, different food this weekend, that's why I was so excited about the food fair.
• I confess...I've been really bored with my life lately.

Hodgepodge

Well, I'm certainly sucking at posting lately. I've been busy, we had our garage sale, didn't sell very many books, most sales were on my jewelry and art stuff. There is a new job posting at my job, and I've been getting things together to apply for that. Plus, still cleaning and hunting for an apartment.
It's totally time for Hodgepodge, check out Joyce's blog to see what other people said.

1. April showers bring May flowers, or so the saying goes. When did you last 'shower' attention on someone or have attention 'showered' on you? Did you love it, or did all that attention make you squirm? My friend had a birthday not so long ago, I got her a lot of stuff, I believe she appreciated it. I haven't had anyone shower me with attention for awhile, I miss that.

2. Share a favorite 'spring break' memory. Not talking about just the 'college spring break' thing, but any favorite spring break memory you'd like to share. Keep it family friendly please! When I was a kid, my mom was on the city council and sometimes her conference in Washington, D.C. lined up with our spring break, so we'd go with her. I loved those. We got to visit so many things, the zoo, the Smithsonian, National Archives, the Engraving and Printing building, the FBI building, lots of cool restaurants, the Washington Monument, the Jefferson Memorial, the Vietnam Memorial, the old capitol, and many more. I loved those trips.

3. It's National Pecan Month...are you a fan? If so, what's your favorite dish that calls for pecans? I'm not a huge pecan fan, every once in awhile I like pecan pie

4. 'Put all your eggs in one basket', 'egg on your face', 'rotten egg', 'walk on eggshells', or 'a good egg'...which egg-spression could most recently be applied to your own life? I'm walking on eggshells around a lot of people in things. That's all I'm going to say on it.

5. In my experience life really likes to hit you and keep pushing you down.

6. What's a favorite song with the word rain in its title or lyrics? Like the Rain by Clint Black, or Songs About Rain by Gary Allan.

7. What does the word hope mean to you? Something to look forward to, I'm always 'hoping' things get better. Shortly after my ex broke up with me, I adopted the word 'hope' as my word, it still is, I keep looking for the light at the end of the tunnel.

8. Insert your own random thought here. As I said above, there's a new job opening at my work. I'm getting things together so I can apply for it. I'm having a hard time figuring out what to put in my cover letter. I want this job soo much.

Hodgepodge

It's Hodgepodge time again, check out Joyce's blog for other people's answers.



1. Since these questions are posting on the first day of April it seems only right to ask-when was the last time you did something foolish? If you can't answer that one, try this one-when was the last time someone fooled you? I don't know, I know my brother used to love playing tricks on me as a kid.

2. What's the last biography or non-fiction book you've read? Was it any good? Non-fiction is about all I read. I'm reading The Invention of Murder right now, it's pretty interesting. Apparently, the first murder happened in England.

3. Garlic-friend or foe? What's your favorite dish made with garlic? I don't really use garlic when I cook, but I do like Chinese garlic chicken.

4. Several Spring flower festivals happen in the US during the month of April. Of those listed, which would you most like to see in person...The Skagit Tulip Festival in Skagit Washington, The Dogwood Arts Festival in Knoxville Tennessee, The North Carolina Azalea Festival in Wilmington North Carolina or the Daffodil Festival Weekend on Nantucket Island, Massachussets? Daffodils always mean the start of spring to me, so I'd have to go with the Daffodil Festival in Massachusetts, plus you'd be on an island near the sea. What's not to like?

5. How do you choose which blogs to read?  What is something that will make you stop and read every time? Something that makes you say, 'eh, think I'll skip this one and move on to the next'? It mostly depends on my mood. I love looking at other people's artwork, so if it has to do with mixed media, I'll most likely stop and look. I also find it interesting to read about other people's lives, though I don't like to spend too much time reading.

6. April is National Mathematics Education Month so tell us, when did you last use math? This morning, to balance my checkbook.

7. In honor of the A-Z challenge kicking off on April 1...choose one word beginning with the letter A to describe your yesterday. I'll get back to you.

8. Insert your own random thought here. We're having a garage sale this weekend. It was originally going to be just books, but we've added some other things to the list. We have garage sales so infrequently, I forget how much work they are. I'm looking forward to getting some of this stuff out of my apartment.

Fun Finds

Last week was spring break, and a favorite antique mall of mine was having spring break sales, I convinced my mom to go with me. Unfortunately, we only had a little over an hour, but I did find some neat stuff to buy:

 a cute Santa Bingo card assemblage for my mother, a tiny McDonald's car (my grandmother had one of these when I was a kid), a Pepsi marble (I just thought it was cool), and a couple quilted pieces (I love quilts, they're always out of my price range though, so when I find something tiny and quilted in my price range, I jump on it).
The next day I stopped over at Hobby Lobby, I noticed I don't have a good Happy Birthday stamp, that's the whole reason I went, but I bought a lot of stuff and not a stamp. Everything was on sale, though, that counts for something, right?

 burlap/fabric flower stickers, colored burlap flowers, blue paper flowers, and colored burlap flowers on sticks

 a cute picture frame, some steampunk stickers and buttons.

Last night, my friend and I went back to the same antique mall and spent almost 3 hours in it, here's what I found:

a large tintype wedding picture (I thought it was a steal at $3), and the cutest pig toothpick holder. It was kinda funny, my friend said she didn't really like antique malls, she was just going because I wanted to go, she ended up spending more money than I did.
Afterwards, we went to Target to see if there were any neat Easter items. I found a few:

a bag of shaped Easter eggs filled with candy (I figured, after Easter I could use them in swaps, they were soo cute), a set of Easter eggs with prizes, a pod of cucumber seeds (these were really neat looking, you just plant that little pod and water it, the outside is biodegradeable and it just grows right out of it, I thought maybe I could handle that), the flower, is a solar flower, my friend got me.

Today, I have to run quite a few errands. I'm mailing my cards for Kimberly's Pink, Black and Bling swap, going to lunch with a friend, looking at a couple apartments, going to Walmart and Dollar Tree for stuff I forgot to buy last night and ending up at the grocery store for ingredients for bread pudding.

HELP

Is anyone having trouble updating their Blogs I'm Following gadget? I've been trying to get all the blogs I'm following listed in this gadget, I've gone through the steps multiple times and it still shows up empty on my blog.
I got a few on, unfortunately, I could only do it by adding URL's, which will take awhile because I follow quite a few blogs. And then, it decided to stop doing that for me.
Anyone have any suggestions?

Wednesday Hodgepodge

It's Hodgepodge time again, check out Joyce's blog to see other people's answers
1. March is known as the windy month. Which of the following phrases best fits your March so far...'throw caution to the wind', 'three sheets to the wind', 'run like the wind', or 'see which way the wind blows'? How about see which way the wind blows. With things changing at my job and having to move and sort things out and see where things go on that route, and sometimes in just planning my days, it seems to change so fast.

2. Your favorite green food? Your favorite dish made with your favorite green food? I like pistachios. I know I've made a pistachio bar before with pistachios crushed in the frosting and pistachio pudding in the actual bar.

3. Ever been locked out of your home-car-office-anywhere? Do tell! I locked myself out of my apartment once. I had to go get a key for a different door, shimmy the chain off of it and slide inside. In this apartment, you can't lock the door without the key.

4. Yoda, Kermit, Shrek, The Wicked Witch of the West, Oscar the Grouch, The Grinch, or Mike Wasowski (Monsters Inc.)...of the green characters listed, which one's your favorite and why? I can't pick between Mike Wasowski and Kermit, I have figures of both of them sitting on my desk so I can see them while I'm using my computer. I love frogs and Kermit trumps all frogs, and how can you not love Mike?

5. "The first task of a leader is to keep hope alive."~Joe Batten Do you agree? Why or why not? That sounds like a great idea, if you don't have hope, I don't think you have much.

6. Share a favorite song with an emotion in it's title. The Power of Love by Huey Lewis and The News. I always think of Back To The Future when I hear it. Side note, I put my media player on shuffle and kept skipping through until I found a song that had an emotion in it, it took awhile, and I really do like this one, even though it's also the first one I found.

7. What's a road trip you'd like to take? I love to travel on some road that has a lot of thrift and antique stores and garage sales. With friends, what more could I want. I'd love to stay in the older hotels and eat at local eateries and visit cool random tourist shops.

8. Insert your own random thought here. I feel so stressed lately, this afternoon I was at work and felt like crying, I had just read some emails that upset me greatly. With everything going on, I feel like I need a break from my life.

Buttons

I broke down and bought some buttons at JoAnn's the other day. They were just so bright and shiny:

 How do you pass those up? I'm so sick of the not colorful outside, so I bought them. I have used a few for a colorful birthday card:

And then I found out I don't have a "Happy Birthday" stamp, so I guess I'll have to go find one of those.

Wednesday Hodgepodge

It's time for the Wednesday Hodgepoge again. Check out Joyce's blog to see other people's answers.

1. Thursday marks the first day of spring...to celebrate would you rather plant a garden or go for a walk in the woods? Would either of those activities be possible on Thursday where you live?Totally go walk in the woods. I would be able to walk in the woods, unfortunately, my day is pretty full on Thursday.
2. When did someone last spring something on you? (or when did you last spring something on someone?)Funny that this is a question. One of my bosses at one of my jobs told us our schedule changed last night for an upcoming event. It's a little annoying because I'm going to have to shift things around to be able to work my scheduled time now.

3. We often think of spring as a time for new beginnings. What's something you'd like to start doing this spring? I can't think of anything new I want to do. I will start perusing the garage sales again.

4. Where do you like to sit in a movie theatre? When did you last sit there, and what were you watching? I do not like movie theaters, they're expensive, loud, lots of talking/crying people/kids. I prefer to check a movie out from the library and sit in my living room. The last time I went to a movie was around Thanksgiving, my friends wanted to see the new Thor movie. I'm still not sure it was worth the $8 to get in.

5. When you meet someone for the very first time, what do you want them to think about you? I want them to like me, but doesn't everyone? I want them to think I'm fun, I think that's why I wear a lot of character shirts. I don't want to be thought of as dull and boring.

6. March is frozen food month (yes, really!). Besides ice cream (gotta make you think a little) what's your most often purchased frozen food item? Microwave dinners. That's about the only thing I purchase, every once in awhile I do get ice cream. I'm always looking for something new and different but yummy.

7. What's something you avoid? Anything? Grumpy people, stress, my parents, cold,

8. Insert your own random thought here.

So, I have to move (if you've read Hodgepodge lately, you know this) and I've been sorting and getting rid of things. My mother asked the other day if I was stressed about the move. I said not so much, and she asked why? I told her I had so many other things to be stressed about. I didn't tell her what because then she'd stress me out by trying to help. She did get a little annoyed about that, but they always want to know what's going on in my life, I find that a little annoying.

My stresses include: my job changing in March (I'm being demoted, along with quite a few of my co-workers), maybe getting a salaried job (but, that will be open to the public and just not internal, so I don't know my chances on that), whether or not I'm staying with my current job (I want to, I just don't know if it's feasible with how my job's changing), the move back of the library (we're in a temporary location, our permanent library will be done in the fall, and we'll be moving back then), and of course my own move (I'm having a hard time finding apartments in my price range, which means I need to find a job that pays more money, but I'm hoping to prolong it long enough to see if I get the salaried job), and of course money (I do have more now than I've ever had, but that's due to cancelling certain things and getting them cheaper, if I have to start paying higher rent, that's not going to last).

I'm really good at hiding my stress. Sometimes I think it's really bad for me. Sometimes I wish I could share everything that stresses me to someone, but I don't have anyone I can tell it to (I do have one person, but we get together infrequently, and she has a lot on her mind as well).  

I confess

I'm stealing this from The Testosterone Three and Me.
I confess....

• My friend and were supposed to go to a local antique mall today, but she got called into work. I'm really upset by it.
• I was sooo excited yesterday, I haven't been to this particular antique mall in years (not an exaggeration) and they are having a spring break sale, starting today.
• I have extra money due to cancelling things and getting them cheaper, I wanted to spend some of that money on vintage buttons and linens.
• I was going to go on a walk because the high today is 52, and walking makes you feel better, but all I felt like doing this morning was laying in bed and being a mope all day.
• In being a mope today, I have somehow forgotten to eat lunch, maybe I'll just have ice cream
• I should know better than to be excited about our plans, I feel that something comes up quite a bit to get them cancelled or derailed.
• I really want a hug. It really floored me last night to get the text saying she had to cancel
• I know she can't do anything about it and you have to work when they tell you to, but....
• Last weekend, I made cheesecake, and it turned out really good.
• I was always scared of making cheesecake, I thought it was above my skill level and I don't have a spring-form pan.
• I'm so sick of apartment hunting and realizing I need more money to be able to afford monthly rents.
• I tried to get one of my friends at the library to go in on a nice apartment, close to the library, with laundry, but she said she didn't want to live with a roommate.
• I don't either, but that might be what happens
• I really wish they would hurry up and figure out this position at the library, so I can plan
• I really wish I get this position at the library, but knowing how many people in the library are going to apply for it and that it will be open to the public, I think I need to just accept that I need a new job
• I don't want a new job.

Where's the easy button?

Hodgepodge Vol. 166

1. Do you have an interest in learning about your family's heritage? Why or why not? If you know a little bit about your roots, share an interesting piece of trivia or a fun fact about someone who goes way back on your family tree. Not really. I know my dad's side is German and my mom's side is English. My last name is kinda unique, so through reading things, I found out one of my relatives worked at Auschwitz and another one ran the Andersonville prison camp during the Civil War.

2. Branch Rickey, the baseball exec credited with signing Jackie Robinson, is quoted as saying-"Luck is the residue of design."Agree or disagree? Why? So, you design something, and luck is whatever's left over? I'm not entirely sure what I think.

3. In the town where you currently reside, what's your favorite green space? McFarland Park brings back a lot of memories, but the place we go to the most is Reiman Gardens, but it's more for the gardens. Since I became single, I don't really hang out in parks much.

4. Who is your favorite comedian? Jim Gaffigan. Some of his stuff's a little vulgar, but I do find it applies to everyday life quite well. My friends and I went to a Mexican restaurant not so long ago, and I was asking them what they thought things were and then I remembered one of his skits. He supposedly used to work in a Mexican restaurant and people would ask him what things were "What is nachos?" "Nachos? It's tortilla with cheese, meat and vegetables." "Oh, well then what is a burrito?" "Tortilla with cheese, meat and vegetables." "Well than what is a tostada?" "Tortilla with cheese, meat and vegetables." "Well, then what I-" "Look, it's all the same shit! Why don't you say a Spanish word and I'll bring you something."

5. March is National Nutrition Month, and almost everyone needs to improve their diet in some way.  What about you? How can you improve your nutrition on a daily basis? Will you try? I don't diet. I'm really good at not eating healthy. I should have better breakfasts, I should stop drinking pop, I should make more of my meals instead of eating frozen meals. The key word being should. I am again trying to cut down on my pop, we'll see how that goes.

6. Which of these green expressions have you 'experienced' in recent weeks -green with envy, green thumb, green around the gills, or give the green light? Explain. Ummm, no. I'm not envious of anyone, I can't grow things, I haven't been sickly, and I haven't been given the ok to do anything.

7. Where is one place you don't mind waiting? I mind waiting everywhere. I try to bring something to do so it doesn't seem like very long.

8.  Insert your own random thought here. One of the ways I'm cutting down on drinking pop is by not going to the HyVee gas station that's on my way to work. Last week, their sidewalk wasn't completely cleaned off, so I told the clerk. It still wasn't shoveled the next day when I went in, so I mentioned it to a different clerk and he rolled his eyes at me. Thursday, it still wasn't shoveled. Sunday, I sent an email to the HyVee at the other end of the parking lot. I haven't heard anything back, but I told them because of the rude clerk I wouldn't be using the gas station anymore.
Tonight, I successfully didn't. I did drink a can of pop that I bought somewhere else, but I did not go to the gas station on my break, or on my way to work. I will still be buying things at the HyVee, but I don't plan on frequenting the gas station anymore.
Also, last week, I mentioned that I got my hair cut, everyone keeps saying how cute it is. So, I'm hoping it really is. I like it, I don't like that it dries funny if I sleep on it. I never had bad hair days when I had long hair.

Butterflies and Cheesecake

I love vintage jewelry. I love going to garage sales and finding cute jewelry. It's winter, though, so I visit our consignment stores for my fill of gently used goods. Last time I went to one of my frequent stops, I looked at their jewelry case, bad idea, now I check it out every time I go in.

Yesterday, I felt I should visit a few places downtown, I didn't plan to spend money, but I did find a few pieces to take home with me.

 A cute basket of flowers, a ring of flowers, 3 butterflies, a caterpillar and a cute pair of earrings.
 
 I also found that really cute square piece.
If you haven't noticed, I really like butterflies. I don't really know exactly why, but I try to pick them up if I see them.

Tonight, I have a trivia event I go to with my family every month. My job is to bring dessert. This month, I decided to try making cheesecake. I've never made it before, mostly because I think it's above my skill level, and I don't have a spring form pan. My co-worker, who makes cheesecake a lot, told me I didn't need one and that I should really try it.
I bought a Taste of Home Grand Prize Winners magazine at the grocery store the other day, and they had a recipe for Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Cheesecake. It looked sooo good, so I decided to try making it.

I messed up a couple things, but it tastes delicious to me. Hopefully, everyone else agrees.

Wednesday Hodgepodge

It's time for Wednesday Hodgepodge. Check out Joyce's blog for other people's answers.

1. The expression 'mad as a March hare' originated with a fictional character who is distracted and frantic. When were you last 'mad as a March hare' and what was it that made you that way? I can't give you a specific time, but most likely it was when I was late and looking for something because I didn't plan ahead. I have a tendency to hurry through my apartment, throwing things around until I find what I'm looking for, or run out of time and leave.

2. Mardi Gras this year falls on Tuesday, March 4th. Have you ever been to Mardi Gras, and if so what did you think? If not, do you have any interest in going? Purple, green, and gold are the colors of Mardi Gras. Which one is most prevalent in your wardrobe? How about in your home? No, I've never been to Mardi Gras. I have, however, been to Mardi Gras World in New Orleans. My dad had a radio conference there where I was in high school, and I got to go along. One of the night events was to go to Mardi Gras world and have dinner there. It was pretty cool.

I'm not sure I'd want to go be around all those crowds and drunk people. I don't wear a lot of those colors. Green is probably most prevalent in my wardrobe, though I'd like to have more purple. Green again, my favorite colors are blue and green, though I'm trying to bring more vibrant colors into my home.

3. Are you old fashioned? It depends on what we're talking about. I think I may be old fashioned in what I expect out of people. I really hate that people have to check their phones all the time, like at work and when you're out with other people. I expect them to pay attention to what they're doing.
And I love antiques and old houses.

4. Do you carefully plan your vacations, or do you prefer the days to be more spontaneous? I like to plan certain things out. I like to make sure I have a hotel to stay at. But, usually I'll just kinda wing it when I get wherever I'm going, unless there's something I want to make sure I see and I need to set up a tour ahead of time.

5. March is National Sauce Month...what's your favorite sauce, and what do you most often top with this sauce? I like pesto. It's easy to make and makes things taste very good.

6. What's something that easily brings a tear to your eye? Animals

7. If you could own any sports team, which one would it be and why? I don't do sports

8. Insert your own random thought here. I cut my hair yesterday. It was at the length where when it's in a ponytail, it annoyed me. It was about chest length and now it hits my ears. The stylist said it was about 8 inches cut off. A pretty drastic change. I work almost right next door to a Great Clips, so I figured I'd just go after work. It's Tuesday (when I write this), very few people have seen my hair cut. I'm curious how people will react when I go into work tonight.